When the Wall Flower Met the Heartless
by DunkinDonutsHobo
Summary: Your a fool. He told her. Your lonely. She told him. Dont be stupid. He scoffed. Dont lie. She berated. Under desperate circumstances our wallflower Sophia and heartless Albel get stranded together in the game of survival, also better known as life. Alphi
1. Prologue

This story is a Sophia/Albel centric. Don't like the pairing? Don't read the story. Simple as that. **Read and Review**. Tell me if I should continue this/

**Prologue **

Sophia Esteed didn't know what was worse, listening to Lieber talk on and on about his love for Maria or sitting by herself in her room. She opted the second one, because that's what happened everyday. Everyone else was always busy with something that seemed important, while she just sat there and smiled.

"…and did you see her hair today? It was gorgeous and smelled even better than yesterday! This life is full of so many wonders! Oh the joys of…" Lieber continued on, she had learned how to tune people out ever since being on the Diplo all because of him.

Sophia nodded a few times, just to make sure she didn't seem rude or un-interested in his…obsession.

She smiled at everyone who walked by and could by now remember each and everyone's name. They had been on the ship for a while. After the defeat of the creator everything went back to the way it had always been, her being in the background all the time being left out of all the decision making. She didn't mind though, thinking to herself. She'd rather not have all the pressure on her anyway.

Nel and Albel were still on board though. After the defeat of Luther they stayed on the Diplo just until we got back to Elicoor II. By now they seemed to be unfazed about all the new technology surrounding them, although at first a little overwhelmed. Nel was always involved in the group meetings and always asked for her opinion even if she didn't have a clue what was being asked.

Albel was Albel and stayed to himself. The only place you could find him is alone on one of the observation decks or in his room. She always wondered if he felt as left out as she did. '_If only I were stronger_.' That was the only thought she had at night. If only she was like Nel, then maybe people would care what she thought. Or maybe even confident as Maria.

"Sophia? Sophia!" Lieber waved his hands in the front of her face. She snapped back to attention and quickly amended.

"Sorry, what was that?" She asked politely. They had stopped walking now and were standing in front of one of the observation deck windows.

"There's a mandatory meeting soon. Everyone has to attend." He said, tilting his head to the side.

"Mandatory?" She asked confused. There were hardly any meetings that she ever had to attend to for the group didn't really need her all that much. Her mood turned gloomy as she thought about all the times in battle where she stayed far off and only healed up her teammates. She didn't know why it bothered her so much, but the feeling of uselessness caught her off guard every once and a while.

"Yeah, looks like defeating Luther isn't our only problem now." He said that as if he didn't really care. He didn't know what it was like to actually be there, standing from afar watching her teammates fall, but not being able to help.

'_I will get stronger._' She thought, looking out through the window to the endless space.

"Do you know what happened?" She asked, still somewhat in a daze.

"A little, apparently there's something looking for you guys."

She turned to him and raised her eyebrow.

"That is a little strange…" She sighed, leaning her head against the glass. She lifted her head as the ding dong ding of the intercom rang.

"**_All personnel please report to the Main Bridge for a mandatory meeting. Once again, All personnel please report to the Main Bridge for a mandatory meeting. This is a mandatory meeting. All personnel must attend." _**

"Looks like we're off." Lieber said, pushing off from the rail and started walking away. He paused when he saw that she hadn't move an inch yet.

"We all have to go you know." He said, whistling a little tune while at it.

"I want to hear what the captain has to say." He sighed dreamily. She fought the urge to roll her eyes.

"You go on ahead, I'll just catch up." She said, she backed off from the window and looked at him walking away.

"Your loss then, but you better hurry up, it's going to start soon. You won't want to miss what Maria has to say." He said, waving back to her while walking.

For the next five minutes she just stood there, leaning against the glass. What's the point? She thought. Even if she went, she'd probably just be a wall flower, sitting there with nothing to say and not even bothered with. She wished it would just go back to the good ol' days when it was just her and Fayt. Watching late night movies, walking around the city, and just hanging out were some of the things they never do anymore.

She sighed as she started making her way to the Bridge. Just as she was about to leave the observation deck the door closed on her before she could get out. She gasped in surprise as her hand was almost caught and chopped off by the door. The windows of the observation deck were shut with thick metal covers. It felt like being locked in a box.

'This is unbelievable!' she thought exasperated. Just as they suddenly get a mandatory meeting, things go wrong.

She pressed the button on the side to open the door manually. Nothing. She tried kicking it. Nothing, but now there was a bruised toe.

Then the lights went red and the screech of the sirens rang out.**_ "Emergency. Emergency. Emergency…." _**The warning rang out through the intercom.

Sophia looked around frantically. She was all alone, everyone was already at the bridge like she was suppose to be. She started to get nervous. The red lights made everything look more sinister and cruel. The sirens screeched over the sound of the emergency interom.

"**_Emergency. Emergency. Emergency…." _**The warning still rang out from above.

Sophia started kicking at the door, pushing it, scratching at it. Nothing worked. And then the familiar creeping fear was back upon her. '_Something is wrong_.' Everything was bathed in red from the emergency lights and the sound of the sirens bounced and echoed off the metal walls and floor.

"_**Emergency. Emergency. Emergency…."**_

Then there came the sound. The sound of something running a nail across a blackboard, or more precisely the metal walls. It felt like it came from everywhere. It kept on getting louder and louder. It was then when Sophia realized what true fear actually was. The sound of it made her fall to her knees, covering her ears with her hands.

Her palms grew sweaty, her eye sight went blurry. "Somebody! Please help me!" She cried to herself, sitting on the floor, with her hands trying to block out all the sound. The sound of metal being shredded rang through her hands into her ears. She squeezed her eyes as tight as she could get them and just screamed.

**Read and Review**


	2. Chapter One

Review and tell me what you think. I'm trying to keep Sophia in character, but not as pathetic as some people make her out to be. Complaints? Thoughts? Comments? I'm all ears. Tell me if this is a disgrace to the makers of Star Ocean.

* * *

**Chapter One: For My Own Good**

The screeching stopped, although the warning siren still rang on. Sophia didn't know what to do. This was one of the first times she was actually truly alone aside from the time when she was alone in the escape pod. Tears leaked out of the side of her eyes and she cursed herself for being so weak. The red light coming from the emergency lights felt like they were coming through her eyelids, they disorientated her and made her mind go fuzzy.

"Stupid fool!" she heard through her hands. She warily cracked one eye open to see standing in front of her, a very disgruntled Albel. The red lights made him look crueler and more sinister than he actually was, or maybe it was just the constant scowl that always seemed to be on his face.

Sophia looked behind him at the wall…well, what used to be considered a wall. The metal wall behind him was shredded to pieces and bent back by his claw, scraps of the wall lay to the floor. '_So that's the screeching I heard._' Sophia thought to herself, instantly feeling the embarrassment and pathetic-ness of how frightened she had gotten.

"What…What are you do-" She stuttered. She could see the disdain on his face as she stuttered and once again felt pathetic under his stare.

"Looking for a way out, isn't that obvious maggot?" He said with what she assumed to be a sneer.

"I'm sorry." She said in a heart beat, not really feeling sorry at all. It was one of those things that just became habit, it was something that she desperately wish she could stop.

"Don't apologize fool! Someone who apologizes all the time shows their insecurities about their own power." He seemed constantly annoyed with her. Even back on Elicoor II while they were in battles, even if she always healed him, he looked at her with such superiority and snide.

She said nothing to him, just shakily got back up to her feet, holding onto the rail for support. She ignored his criticizing stare and continued to stand up. What had set off the alarms? What had made the sudden lockdown? Questions she wanted to ask, but deciding not too after her early attempt of speech.

It was such a weird silence as she paced up and down the deck. She didn't attempt to talk, and neither did he. Instead he just walked over to the next available wall and started running his claw up and down it. This went on for another ten minutes, but each strike becoming more and more aggressive. Sophia just sighed and leaned against the metal rail waiting for him to be finished.

"We need to go." Albel stated out of nowhere, but this time, he spoke with a serious tone, a tone of someone who was about to go into battle. She didn't say anything for the hopes of not demeaning herself once again in his presence.

"Something's coming." He stared at the early hole he made, the one where he had entered, then stepped into the new hallway he had opened up, with out so much of a glance back to see if she followed.

"What's coming?" She asked quietly, half hoping he'd heard her, the other hoping he didn't.

"Why don't you go find out." He sneered as if it was the stupidest thing she could've said at the moment. She stopped walking and stared at the back of his head, somehow it was as if he could feel her eyes burning through his skull because he lazily turned around to look her in the eyes. Her anger, which was mostly made up of her embarrassment fumed inside of her.

Holding eye contact with him was something most grown men wouldn't be able to do for a long time, but the determination in her was something that couldn't be shaken.

"I don't know why you seem to hate me so much, but I want you to know that I'm done caring." Of course she wish she had said that, but what really came out was:

"I…I'm sorry." In a stutter and defeated tone, her face glowing red, this wasn't much of a problem since the red emergency lights were still on.

He didn't say anything, instead just turned around and kept on walking at a fast pace. Maybe it was because she really did feel something chasing them, or maybe it was because he told her something was coming, but she had a feeling of dread and anxiety in her as she tried to run/walk as fast as he was.

"Why are we running?" She blurted out and immediately wished she could take it back, but it was too late, he had heard her.

"Do I really need to spell it out for you fool?" He spat out without turning around to look at her. She bit back her tongue, which probably wouldn't have been able to say anything either way.

"We are both unarmed. Everything on this stupid piece of metal is locked. Something is coming. And right now everyone in the Bridge, where all the other fools are, can see us." He said angrily.

It was then when she noticed that the camera's in the hallway were all pointed directly at them, moving with them too. If it were possible, her face grew redder knowing that the rest of the group, the crew of the Diplo included, could see her humiliation as Albel shot her down each time she attempted to speak.

* * *

**Diplo Main Bridge**

"Dammit!" Maria brought her fist down hard on control panel. "Someone has to get a message out to them." She started yelling out orders to the crew.

"There has been an intrusion in block 12-0394 Ma'am!" An operator shouted out to Maria.

"Another one in block 24-0093" Mirage supplied.

"Will someone please work on getting the damn doors opened?! Unbelievable! Trapped in your own ship." She said shaking her head.

"You! Find out how this happened. Seal off all the main doors connected to those blocks!" Cliff took over the orders. Everyone was scrambling around the room, no one knowing exactly what to do. The sound of chaos was everywhere, the emergency siren, the frantic keyboards, the shouting of orders over the noise.

"I want visuals of whatever this thing is now!" Maria tried to speak over all the noise.

"Already on it." Mirage said, typing as fast as she can.

"Oh...my…god…" Marietta stared at the screen. The room was shocked into silence, listening to the screams and wails coming from the screen.

The main screen now showed a live video feed from the areas that were broken into and the people who didn't make it out. There were creatures. Creatures that were difficult to describe. They looks like they might've once resembled some sort of human, they're faces deformed, as if it had been slashed up and down. Their skin deep red and burnt, They looked as if they had been skinned alive, their claws long and sharp. And the sound they made. The sound of a hyena's laugh, the just kept laughing.

"Somebody help!!" a girl screamed her voice coming out fuzzy through the intercom. She was cowering in the corner crying out, knowing that nothing she could do would save her from her fate.

"Ahh! Let me out!" a man screamed clawing at the metal doors with his bare hands.

But that wasn't what was so horrifying. The Diplo crew that had not made it out of the ship were currently fighting against these monsters. You saw everything from the cowering girl in the corner of the hallway, to the man being eaten alive right in front of her. The screams and wails were too much. Just too much.

Fayt just stared at the monitors in misery. Albel and Sophia were currently on it. They weren't the only two people who weren't in the safety of the bridge, a handful of people weren't able to make it before the doors were sealed off and the sirens went off."

"I knew I should made her come with me!" Lieber said from right behind him. Fayt wheeled on him with out much of a warning.

"You left her alone with Albel!?" He practically screamed, Lieber backed off behind Cliff.

"Now's not the time kid. Let's just work on making sure those things don't get to them." Cliff said for the first time being real serious.

Nothing was said for the next five minutes, everyone just watching the live feed from the cameras as each person left alive on the screen screamed and cried for help.

"Lieber! Prep the mini subs. We have to evacuate." Maria ordered. Taking action, no one had moved or said anything. All went deadly quiet, making the screams from the monitors louder and louder.

"The moment we release the sealed doors everyone go to the pod docks. Don't look back and don't wait up." She shouted out loud enough for everyone to hear. No one made any movement of any kind.

"Maria…this ship was your life." Lieber said softly. Maria ignored him, keeping her eyes hard.

"You get left behind, then that's your problem." She said loudly, before shouting, "Mirage remote control prep the mini subs. Cliff divide everyone into groups. Make sure there's one sub left for Albel and Sophia in case the manage to make it. Everyone be prepared."

"Fayt, send a message to Sophia's communicator, tell her to take her Albel to the sub docks. Tell her we'll leave one left for them, but if they don't make it in time, then there's nothing else we can do." She said shortly.

* * *

**Southern Hallways**

Albel and Sophia were still walking down the hallway, but she had this feeling. This feeling of the need to run. She kept looking behind her to see because of this feeling, but every time she looked, there was nothing. Then she felt the vibration of her communicator in her pocket jingle it's little tune.

Albel heard a small gasp come from behind him. He turned around to see her holding one of those…small round things in her hand. "What maggot?" She didn't appear to have heard him.

"We have to go." She said shakily. He hated the way her voice got so unsure. It reminded him of all the other maggots back in Aquios that couldn't even look at him without going cross eyed with fear, although their fear did give him some sort of sick satisfaction.

"**Doors opening. Please step away from the doors. Once again, Please step back. Doors are now opening."**

Sophia's eyes went wide. Her face more frantic. Albel had had enough of this. He marched on over to her and took her roughly by the shoulders. Her eyes were shining again. Tear ready to fall.

"Albel we need to go! We need to go! Please! Come on, lets just go!" She started hyperventilating.

"Go where fool! Where!" He yelled at her. She cringed in his grip, she looked back behind her and started tried to move out of his hold.

"Evacuation." She said before running out of his grip and into the now open doors leading out to new hallways.

"Damned fool." He screamed after her, quickly catching up.

Sophia ran, turning corners, trying to remember the layout of the ship, avoiding the areas Fayt had sent her. When she looked on her communicator she saw everything. Everything.

"We need to get to a sub!" She told him frantically. She was about to round a corner when Albel caught up to her and grabbed her arm last minute, roughly pulling her back, holding her to his chest, covering her mouth with his hand. She made a tiny squeak, but otherwise didn't try to move, but didn't stop her from trying to speak through his hand.

"Shut up maggot." He whispered into her ear. And then she heard it, round the corner, there was a laugh. Not any human kind of laughter, it was high pitched and sounded like a broken record, being played over and over again.

Albel let go of her, after she realized what she had almost done. She was shaking, uncontrollably shaking.

"What do we do…" She whispered, hand covering her mouth, taking slow steps backwards.

"There has to be another way." She was talking to herself, gripping her scalp, as if trying to squeeze out any type of information that could help them. Then she suddenly looked up, "I've got it." She said.

She grabbed his hand taking him down the hallways they came from. For the first few turns Albel was preoccupied by the thought of her…touching him…it was….utterly despicable! For someone of her lowly rank to even look at him was a crime! And for so long he has put up with it, but this brought it to a whole new level! That she had the audacity to do something like this was unheard of! Yet, he didn't pull away just yet.

She navigated them through different halls and eventually came to a halt. Backing up slowly, she covered her eyes with her hands and Albel soon realized why. The way they had come upon had bodies, half eaten bodies. He could see her shoulders shake. Staring at the particular body still in a fetal position. These people died slowly.

"Let's go." Albel said gruffly. Pushing his way past her into the end of the hall into the sub docks. To him, he didn't see the bodies, he didn't see the pain they had been in before they died. She could see it though. She could see the madness in it, the twisted and sick reality of what had happened.

They entered the dock, seeing the one mini sub still left. Albel made his way towards it, opening the hatch and already walking in through the back when he realized the source of his problem wasn't following.

"We can't just leave them there." Sophia ground out through her shaking teeth.

"They're dead fool." He said with ease. She balled her fists and held her ground.

"No. We can't leave them." She said, eyes cast downward. She saw his eyes narrow and his glare intensify.

"Get in the damn metal contraption." Albel said as forcefully as she had. She held her ground, not letting her gaze waver.

"If I leave here without you, which I'm fully capable of doing with out any regret what so ever, then your little boy toy Fayt and the other fools will probably leave me out in this 'space' you speak of. This is for my own good. Not yours." He finished up, stretching out his claw, She saw him swing it, then everything went dark.

* * *

Tell me what you think. Too out of character? Review please. It would be much appreciated. 


	3. Chapter Two

**Chapter Three**

The first sounds Sophia woke up to were the sounds of an angry voice and a computer generated one. It was almost sad. She couldn't see him really, only the reflection the computer screen showed of him so she knew he was sitting in the seat directly in front of her. Of course he chose to sit in the front.

Her head felt like it was hit by a train and back. And the shouting from her less than happy companion was making it all the more worse. She gripped her head as much as she could without the arm restraints of the pod hurting her arms.

"Listen to me maggot. I'm giving you ten seconds to tell me where the hell we are!" she heard him shout savagely to the monitor.

"Certainly, Coordinates are N12304.383 and E392803.542." The computer said in its generated voice. Sophia could hear Albel smash him hand down into the keypad.

"I don't want your stupid numbers! Coordinates? Bah!" He said giving up, letting his head bang against the backrest of the seat. All became silent once again.

Sophia wasn't sure if she should say anything. Saying something would announce that she was in fact awake and that may cause some awkwardness then again on the other hand if she just stayed quiet then the Diplo would find them. Right there it hit her. The people, dead. Her friends, gone. The ship, destroyed. And herself, stranded. She gasped at the information that suddenly seemed all too familiar. It felt like the first time she was stranded all by herself before the Vendeeni captured her. She felt herself getting claustrophobic, wanting to get out before they caught her again. She tried taking deep breaths to soother herself, but only found little comfort in that.

Albel heard a soft gasp from behind him and instantly knew she remembered what had happened, without bothering to move he said, "Suck it up maggot."

He had known she was awake and wondered why she hadn't made a sound till now, '_Maggot thought she could fool me._' He thought to himself humored.

Sophia quieted down, glad he couldn't see her flaming cheeks from shame of always on a breakdown within his presence. '_I will be stronger._' She treated that saying like a mantra saying it over and over again in her head. He was the one who knocked her out. He was the one who didn't want to help those people. Try as hard as she might, she couldn't hate him. She knew he was right, of course he was right. There was no way to help the people. The ship was on self-destruct. But still, to have no compassion at all for all those who've died. He was a…He was a…

"You're a monster." She whispered.

Quiet enough to sound like she was talking to herself, although loud enough for him to hear. She heard his metal arm clink against the chair when his body tensed. He instantly relaxed back into the chair so fast that she wouldn't have noticed if his arm didn't make the noise. She heard him give a mirthful chuckle, she pictured his smirk that was probably on his face at the moment.

"That's very good and how long did it take to figure that out?" She heard him say from up front. She stared sullenly at the back of his seat.

"You're cruel." She whispered once again.

"Compliment taken." He sounded almost joyful. She thought it was crazy. He wasn't like anyone else she knew. This mad had no compassion, he had no feelings, he had no heart. He was a heartless man. And what's worse was he knew it. He enjoyed the fact.

"Why are you the way you are?" She asked him. She heard him tense again. The seat clinking with his metal arm, although this time he did nothing to show his rising temper.

"Do you enjoy doing this?" She continued. Her own emotions flaring. She was angry. She was upset. But most of all, she was disappointed. Her mother had always taught her that in every person there was always some amount of good. Even the smallest amount. Compassion made people human. But in Albel, she saw none. All she saw was a monster.

"You don't know what you're talking about maggot." He snarled. Sophia winced in her seat from the anger in his voice, but she refused to back down. She was upset. She didn't know how to react. She was on a roll.

"No one does when it comes to you! Whose side are you on?" She snapped back just as angrily.

Sophia will never know why she was being so outspoken, especially with Albel. Perhaps it was the fact that she couldn't see his face during this ordeal. Or maybe it was because she felt reassured that he was restraint to the seat just as she was.

"You're a really screwed up person." She said, letting out what she's been wanting for say every time he sneered at her.

More silence came. She wondered what he thought of her sudden outbursts. Did he hate her? Did he think for a complete moron? Did she annoy him? He probably did hate her. She probably was a complete moron. Of course she was annoying him now. She just wished he would say something already. Letting the silence stretch on made her anxious for him to do anything. Yell at her, laugh at her, mock her! She had already braced herself for all of those, but the silence came unexpected. It made her feel as if she had gone too far.

"You're a fool." He told her.

There was no anger. No hate. No emotion. She almost did a double take. Had she gone too far? When she heard the soft yet sneering laughter directed at her from the front, she knew that she hadn't.

There had to be a reason he was like this. There must've been something that happened to him to turn him into the twisted person he was now. She thought and thought but nothing came to her. She hadn't said anything for a while now. Then she thought of it. It was the same reason she was so quiet around the Diplo.

"You're lonely." She told him.

"Don't be stupid." He scoffed in an instant without even thinking.

"Don't lie!" she berated.

"Maggot! lets talk about your problems now!" He snapped at her. She braced herself for what she was about to hear. She hadn't known Albel long, but she knew right about now he was going to say the most he's ever said to a person in a long time. She knew he was gonna speak with a sentence that has more than four words. Even if it was an insult.

"You are nothing. Nothing. Lower than the mass of dirt I was on. You are a weak, pathetic person. If it weren't for Fayt saving you in battle all the time you wouldn't even be here! You think you can judge me! Bah! Take a look at yourself. The world isn't such a bright place now is it? You think you can get by on life depending on others, Well I'm not sorry to be the one to tell you that your wrong! Only the strong survive. Don't try to solve my problems when you can't even solve your own."

He started off angry. Pure anger and hate. During the middle it lessened to an annoyance of explaining the world as if to a two year old. And he ended with a quiet bite. His words hit her. They hit her harder than anything anyone's ever said to her. She didn't know why it mattered. She didn't know why it hurt her. But it did, maybe it was because she was too sensitive. Maybe it was because no one has ever said those words to her. It was always implied that she was weak. It was always implied that she was never really important. Not during the fight with Luther, not with the crew on the Diplo, and not in anyone's life.

His speech made her quiet. She didn't know how to reply. What could she say? So she went with what she always said.

"I'm sorry." She whispered, her head hanging down, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. She used one foot to step on her other foot. A nervous habit she always did while sitting.

"You're just making it worse." He stated gruffly. Nothing she seemed to do or say was any good.

She just sat there. The worst was over. They sat there in silence. Sophia didn't think her words affected him the way his affecter her. But then again, who knew? Certainly she didn't. The only thing she knew was that she yelled at Albel the Wicked and was still alive to tell her story.

Albel sat in his seat clenching and unclenching his fist. He ground his teeth together silently raging. How dare she! How dare she assume such things! Stupid girl. One should learn not to shoot their mouth off. If he hadn't been restrained to the seat at the time she was shouting he didn't know what he would've done. He was not a moral person, but as a samurai, hitting women was lower than the lowliest earth worm under foot.

What was worse was that she made him think about himself. She made him think about his life. She made him think about his problems. Bah! Problems yeah right. She's just a fool. He growled softly to himself. '_Stupid Girl_.'

Hours went on by without any head way. No ship had come to rescue them. Nothing came through on the intercom. Sophia was sure that they were utterly and completely lost. She sat, she napped, she ate the air dry food supply they had in their escape pod. A complete twenty four hours passed by and neither of them spoke a word to each other.

Sophia wasn't used to this silence. She was used to the normal silence of when she was by herself on the observation decks of the Diplo. She was always by herself when it was quiet. This was a different type of silence. It was strained one. Maybe it was only her who felt weird about how quiet it was. A day had already passed from when she blew up at him, and yet neither of them have said a word yet.

Another eight hours passed, although boredom made it seem like years. She had to say something. This was last resort method. She had to do it. Her impulses were too much. This was what her and Fayt did all the time, but attempting with Albel might just kill it forever. But here she goes.

"I spy with my little eye..." She looked around the pod, and what caught her eye instantly was the big red button that said 'EJECT' on it, "…something red."

Here it goes. The storm is coming. She knew it. She could feel it.

"The button." Albel said simply, sounding more bored than she was.

Sophia's eyes bulged out of her sockets. 'WHAT!? He played along?!' Her mouth was slightly agape and she didn't bother shutting it. Albel the Wicked, Albel the Terrible played I Spy. If this wasn't a sign from God then she didn't know what was! So she didn't stop.

"I spy with my little eye…" She kept on making up random ones, although the answer always ended up being "The button."

Albel didn't know why he bothered. After a day and a half he had simmered down. He knew she was a fool and didn't' know what the hell she was saying. But that didn't mean it was done and over with. Once they got out of here, separate ways till the end. He didn't give a fuck what happened to her then. He had stopped thinking about the game after half an hour. The answer was always going to be the button. There wasn't anything else remarkable in this metal contraption. And of course she always said "I'm sorry." Whenever she kept on spying the button.

He listened to her voice. She was soft spoken, although had a little spunk in it. Without even being able to see her he could hear the smile on her face in her voice. Dammit! What the hell. This is what his boredom leads him to do! Analyze a fool's voice? He really needed to get out of here. Without his knowledge the game had ended. And she had quieted again.

"Hey…Albel?" She asked hesitantly, almost regretfully.

"What is it maggot?" He asked gruffly.

"I'm sorry." She said, "Wait! I know, Don't apologize, but I'm being sincere, I knew I shouldn't have said those things before. I don't' know what came over me."

Albel raised his eyebrow. About damn time. She should have realized you don't say those things to a Captain of the Black Brigade anyway!

"Apologizing so much as you do is annoying, stupid girl." He said a little more harsh that he realized. Her constant "I'm Sorry's" were really annoying. They made his ears hurt every time she said it, which was a lot in the past two days. It annoyed him to the moon and back.

Sophia's cheeks went red with embarrassment or shame again. She wasn't even sure when it came to this man anymore!

"Fine then!" she didn't know why she snapped back. She never has, not even to Fayt, and they're known each other for years. She was never one of those people to start arguments for fun.

"Then I promise that I won-"

"Promises are immature, fool." He cut her off. Sophia could feel her face burning up once again.

"Okay…" she said slowly, Albel thought she was done talking for good, then she started back up again, "then I'll make you a deal."

Albel's eyebrow rose even higher although he made no noise. Sophia took this as an 'Okay, lets hear it.'

"I'll stop saying I'm sorry so often and for no reason if it annoys you oh-so-much. Although you have stop calling me maggot, fool, stupid girl!" She said quickly.

"Is that an order?" He asked almost in surprise, but more of a quick sort of anger.

"No…it's called a compromise. I stop annoying you. You stop calling me names." She said.

"Since my apologizing annoys you so much…" She continued.

Albel thought on this. Her constant apologizing did get tiring. He didn't want to hear it.

"Then what am I to call you?" He asked in a bored manner.

Sophia thought on this. Him calling her by her name sounded completely insane and unheard of!

"Well…I don't know! Anything else! Like maybe just 'girl,' 'brunette,' or 'Sophie!' Anything but maggot, worm, or fool." She said making up her mind. Sophie was as close as her name which she could get it without him actually saying it.

Albel's first reaction was to say flat out no, but he remembered all the times she said sorry after I SPY, and counting from two days ago, it has been a lot. Her saying sorry has gained the equivalence of a screeching cat. He weighed out his options. Calling her 'girl' wouldn't be that bad. He could always say the 'stupid' part in his head. It's not like she'll ever know.

"Agreed…girl." He said, mentally adding in the 'stupid.'

Sophia's moment of victory was cut short by the awful red lights glowing from the normally white lights sockets and the computer generated voice booming from above.

"**Fuel Low, Food Supply Low, Energy Low. Preparing for emergency crash landing by surrounding planet."**

Sophia gripped the arms of her seat and brought her legs up to her chest. She bent her head down on her knees to block out the lights and sounds. She could slightly hear Albel cursing the metal contraption to the lowest depths of hell, but somehow she didn't really think that was helping.

"**Entering planet's atmosphere in 10…9…8…7...6…5…4…3…2…1." **

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**Please Review, see and errors or mistakes please tell me **


	4. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

Everything was bathed in the red emergency lights

Everything was bathed in the red emergency lights. Sophia's hands were still gripped on the arms holds, her eyes still screwed shut, and her body shaking. She said the first thing that came to mind, "We're alive?"

"Are you stupid?" came the reply from up front.

"Hey! We made a deal." She said a little hurt, but trying not to let it show.

"It was a question, not an insult." He scoffed, she could picture his scowl on his face perfectly in her mind.

"You know scowling as much as you do will make you get wrinkles." She said in her best haughty voice she could make. All she heard was a grunt from the front.

She heard a screech of metal from the front and saw his seat restraints lifting up with his mechanical claw. She pushed the release button for her chair, but nothing happened. She tried pressing it again.

Then jabbing it. Then punching it. Then slamming it. Then she heard a slight pop sound, her eyes went saucer-sized as she saw it pop off the spring as the little red button rolled away, leaving springs and wires sticking out of the hole.

"Gah!" She yelled in frustration, all the while Albel smirked and started walking out.

"W-Wait! You can't leave me here!" She called out to him.

"Oh really now." He said in a bored tone, walking out towards the door and opening the hatch and letting in the light from outside.

"Albel!" She yelled after him. He was already out of the doorway.

She heard nothing from outside at all for the next time minutes.

"Albel?" She called out.

"Come on, this isn't funny." She yelled out.

Albel casually strolled in again, his smirk already in place. "Your company has been most unusual. So long then Sophia." Then he walked right out again.

Sophia sat shell shocked. She couldn't believe what she had just heard! It was the first time she thought she ever heard him say something of that level! She sat there for a straight ten minutes still shocked and slightly confused.

"He…said my name." She whispered to herself, still not moving. She felt color rise in her cheeks, she wasn't sure if it was from confusion or maybe, just maybe…What was she even thinking! It was Albel for the love of god! But no matter how hard she tried she couldn't get the heat rising to her face to leave. She just sat there still in utter awe.

"…HE JUST LEFT ME HERE?!" Sophia finally put two and two together. He had up and left. She kicked the back of the chair in front of her yelling at the top of her lungs obscenities she didn't even know she knew.

She hated being alone. There were two things she couldn't believe. First he called her by her name! Had he ever called anyone by their name? She didn't even think he knew her name to begin with! The thought of him calling anyone by their name was ridiculous to begin with. Second, he left her. He literally got up and walked out. She knew what he was like. She knew how twisted he was. She knew, oh boy she knew, but somehow she thought that those couple days they spent floating around in space was worth something? She felt so naïve.

Now she was alone, completely by herself on some random planet in some random solar system. Truly, she could be anywhere.

"Hello!" She tried yelling outside.

"Anyone! Help!" She yelled even louder.

"The least he could have done was help me out of here." She grumbled dully.

Hours passed by, nothing happened, no one came. She felt like she was back on the Diplo, sitting in her room, waiting for someone to come and take her out of her boredom. Now there wasn't even anyone to play 'I spy with my little eye!'

It was starting to get dark. Sophia had given up screaming for help. No one was out there. Her one chance at getting out of here was the one who stranded her here. She tried taking deep breaths to calm herself, but outside things were already dark. She could start to hear strange sounds coming from wherever she was. Then she lost it.

"ALBEL I'M GONNA KILL YOU!" She screamed, kicking the chair in front of her like crazy, smacking her arms up and down.

"I HATE YOU!" She yelled louder, screwing her eyes shut and picturing herself torturing and of murdering of a certain swordsman.

"IF I EVER SEE YOU AGAIN I'M GONNA CHOP OFF YOUR-"

"Hello there?" She was interrupted from a voice that came from outside. It sounded so familiar, but she couldn't place it. Then a head poked in from the doorway.

"…Adray?" She asked hesitantly, her head felt ready to explode with confusion.

"Sophia?" Adray asked back. Neither of the said anything for a while, Sophia, because she didn't understand why Adray was standing before her, and Adray, because he was concerned of the mental health of the young girl before him.

Realization dawned on her.

"I'm on Elicoor II aren't I…?" Sophia asked slowly.

"That is what the blue haired one called it." He said also slowly.

Sophia couldn't tell if she was upset, annoyed or overjoyed. It was a mix of hurt at being left behind, stuck to her chair for way over twenty four hours, annoyance to the fact that she was hurt because a jerk left her alone, and joy to finally see a familiar helpful face.

"Let me help you out of that." Adray said with his cheerful voice, he came over and with one muscled arm lifted up the metal restraints without breaking a sweat. Finally freed of the confinements she got up and stretched her legs and arms out.

"I heard yelling out here and I thought it sounded familiar to these old ears of mine." He said, laughing to himself a little. Sophia just sighed, she would have laughed too, but she simply did not have the energy anymore. Her mind was still occupied on a certain swordsman, unbeknownst to her a frown formed over her face. Adray took note of this.

"Where are we?"

"We're on the edge of Duggus Forest, not the ideal place for an outing I'd say."

"Why don't we head back, I set up a camp further down because it's too dark to travel now." Adray said putting a fatherly hand on my shoulder. Sophia just nodded absent mindedly. Following Adray to the glow of a distant fire not too far from the crash site.

'I thought I was making so much progress with him…' She thought to herself, watching her feet step one in front of the other in the dim moonlight. They walked for a bit before coming onto the campsite. There was only small fire and a sleeping mat laid out in front of it.

Sophia sat down in front of the fire and drew her knees to her chest. She just stared into the red blaze while Adray seated himself across from her on the other side of the fire. Adray looked on at the youth whose eyebrows looked knitted in concentration. Adray sensed how tired the young girl was and decided not to interrupt her thoughts with small talk. Neither said anything for a few moments, but when Sophia finally yawned he decided to step up.

"What's on your mind?" He asked with a comforting smile. Sophia returned the smile, albeit half-heartedly though.

"It's just that I thought I was beginning to get through to someone, but apparently not." Sophia said, still staring at the fire.

"Ah, this certain someone was your friend?"

"Umm, well not exactly, wait, no, I don't mean I wouldn't want to be, but it's like, well he probably doesn't want to, or argh!" Sophia gave up and started fiddling with a little twig from the floor.

"Complicated?" Adray said with a knowing smile.

"I didn't think so until I tried explaining it." She said before laughing.

"He probably wouldn't want someone like me to be his friend anyway though…" She continued with a soft, fake laugh.

"The boy probably doesn't know how to be a friend if he doesn't want someone as nice as you around!" Adray said comfortingly.

She giggled at that, "I think he just hates me a little actually."

"Oh?! This is something unheard of." Adray said, he sounded genuinely confused.

"He thinks I'm weak and annoying and stupid and…I don't know." Sophia frowned, wanting to change the topic immediately she asked another question, "Hey Adray, do you ever feel lonely?"

"That is a little strange of you to ask, but no, not really I think, why do you ask?" He said scratching his head. she just giggled, typical Adray.

"This might sound a little weird, but…I think I'm invisible." Sophia said with a soft laugh.

"I see you just fine!" Adray protested. She could tell by the way he said it that he did not really get what she was trying to say at all. On the Diplo she was always invisible. People saw her, but they never actually saw or cared about the real her. It felt like she was only there for show. It was like she was irreplaceable.

"I don't know what I'm even talking about. Its just that sometimes I wish I could be more like Nel, or maybe Maria or Mirage. I want to be strong and confident." Sophia sighed. Adray said nothing for a moment, then looked her in the eyes.

"I think you should stay you, nothing more, nothing less." Adray said, not looking at her, but at the fiery embers.

Adray laid down on his back and looked up at the sky and murmured to himself for a bit. She didn't have anything to say about what he said. She just sat there staring into the fire. His words were meant to comfort, but she couldn't help feeling that if she were like Mirage then Adray wouldn't even have to have said those words because she wouldn't have been so pathetic.

"I was heading to city of Peterny, I'm heading to the guild HQ there, I could accompany you there, maybe you will see someone you know." Adray suggested. Sophia nodded, what other choice did she have? The only other person she knew from this planet was Nel, who was somewhere in space, Adray who had to leave her once they got to Peterny, and Albel who had already ditched her before. Needless to say, she was more alone now than ever.

With that thought in her head she drew her knees closer to her body, putting her face between her knees. Adray had already fallen asleep before she was even able to answer him. She laid down herself, knees still curled against her chest, she drew herself into a tight ball, falling asleep too.

Adray peeked his eye open to see if the young girl had fallen asleep. When he was convinced that she was asleep he sat up and stretched his shoulders.

"You really should not have left a defenseless girl alone in the Duggus Forest. What kind of man are you?" Adray said loud enough for the eavesdropping ears to hear, but not loud enough to wake up the young girl.

Adray heard a soft growl coming from the unmoving form behind the forest brush.

"Just incase you haven't heard, we're heading to Peterny. She doesn't have anywhere to go after there." Adray said, implying for the certain intruder what to do.

"And what problem of that is mine?" A rough voice came from the brush.

"Then why are you still here." Adray asked, with a knowing smile hidden by his bowed head.

"That is none of your business peasant!" He yelled, everything quieted once again once he realized the sleeping girl. Sophia stirred a bit, but went back into a sound sleep.

"Goodnight then." Adray said, falling back on his back again, asleep in an instant.

Albel growled lightly in his position behind the brush. It was not his problem the stupid girl had no where to go! Why should he even care? Why the hell was he even still there? He turned to leave the scene, but something made him stop. He growled angrily at himself for not being able to leave the camp site. His feet just refused to move and his eyes were brought back to the figure sleeping beside the fire.

'It is not my problem! She can do whatever she wants!" He thought to himself angrily.

He turned around looking at the girl. She was curled into a tight ball, as if trying to block out the world. 'Bah! She is not my problem!' He thought again, but his feet still refused to move from their spot. He heard a murmuring coming from the site. The girl was muttering something in her sleep. He moved closer to their camp, slinking in the shadows.

"Uhmm…don't go…." She murmured, extending her arms out as if to catch something. 'What a fool.' He said as he started walking away, with every intention of heading back to Airyglyph, but then she began talking again.

"I…don't….alone…." She cried softly. He stood there looking on from his spot leaning against a tree. His feet stopped responding to him again.

'Dammit! Move!' he thought to himself.

"Don't leave!" she cried again. Albel angrily punched the tree with his hand. Something made him stay. Something made him sit down on the ground leaning against the tree. Something made him fall asleep hidden by the forests trees. Something might have been her.

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So there was another chapter! What actually made me update this was a certain review that came from one of you guys! So keep on reviewing! Tell me what you think. :)

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	5. Chapter Four

Chapter Four

**Chapter Four**

Sophia yawned and stretched out her arms, all the trees started to look the same. The scenery all began to blend in with each other and the bird calls began to sound monotone. Instead what she did was watch herself put one foot in front of the other. Her and Adray had been walking for some time, only coming across the random fiend or two, but Adray was a strong guy, Sophia was just always in the way.

"Have you thought about what you are going to do once we get to Peterny? We are close." He said, snapping Sophia out of her daze.

She began fiddling with the hem of her shirt, She really hadn't thought about what she was going to do. There wasn't really anything she could do, she had no way to contact Fayt or Maria. Nel was with Fayt and Maria. There was no more Albel, he was probably already back in Airyglyph by now. That left Adray, but Adray had work to do once he got there. She was going to be all alone, and the thought scared her. Even though her anger had still not completely faded, she thought about how she wouldn't have been so alone if Albel had decided to stick around, that thought alone slowed her pace.

"Uhmm, well I was thinking about, maybe staying at the inn for a while, umm, you know to think about what to do next." She said, a little unsure and vague. Adray raised an eyebrow.

"Ah, it is good to have a plan. As soon as I get to the city I have to go straight to the guild, I am very behind." He said, sounding completely oblivious to her uncertainty.

"Yeah…a plan…" She said absent mindedly.

She could see the city up ahead and sighed, in an hour or so they would be there and from there on she was flying solo. It never dawned upon her that she was actually alone till they reached the gates, she knew she was alone, but she was holding out for that small almost impossible percentage that she would bump into someone.

They walked in silence for the rest of the way, Sophia not really paying attention to her surroundings, it seemed like she kept on passing the same exact tree. Without even realizing it they arrived and she looked at the large stone arch entrance to the city. It loomed above her like her hopeless situation.

As soon as they reached the center of the city Adray turned to her, "I'm sorry Miss Sophia, but I was suppose to be at the guild yesterday, I have to go now, I hope everything works out for you." He said, and with a wave, walked away, just like that.

Sophia stood there awkwardly in the square, listening to the vendors scream out what goods they had. She twiddled her thumb. '_Great…'_ she thought in disdain. She felt so lost. Then it hit her. She had no money. No money at all. _'No more Inn…' _ Deciding to get out of random middle of the square spot, she went over to the church and sat on the wide steps. To make matters worse, all she could think about was Albel.

Albel silently cursed to himself while watching the girl sit there pathetically. It was not his problem. It was not his problem at all. Why did he have to care what she did, Exactly right, he didn't. He mentally screamed at himself for even standing there.

He saw her bring her knees to her chest and rest her head on it. From where he was standing he could see her attempt at a whistle, looking quite stupid while doing so. He clenched his fist, willing his feet to move on.

He should have gone to Airyglyph by now. He should have reported back to the king and whipped his division back into shape. Peace may be present, but war was inevitable. They needed to prepare. From the snippets of conversation happening around them, Greeton was now becoming a problem. But even as he turned to leave, he couldn't.

He turned around to glance back at the girl for the last time, he tensed as he found she wasn't there anymore. He shrunk back into the shadows of the merchants stall to avoid her gaze, wherever she was.

"You should go talk to her sonny." Albel turned to the old lady whose stall he was hiding behind the shadow of. She was dressed in what looked like a gypsies garb, her skin was wrinkled with age, and her eye full of with a mischievous glint in them. Eye, as in one, her other eye was glassy and vacant looking, rolling around at awkward angles. It was a fake. He didn't like the hag one bit. She looked crafty to him.

"Shut up old fool." He spoke harshly, but was only received with a crazed laugh.

"She be heading this way now." The old lady chuckled in mirth, Albel clenched his fist, she was heading this way, walking as in a daze, oblivious to her surroundings.

"Come here girlie girl!" The old lady shouted out to the girl, Albel was about to tear down the stall with his claw, what was that old hag think she was doing?

Sophia timidly approached the stall. As she grew closer she could see something was wrong with the woman's left eye, it rolled around to impossible angles.

"You be lost child?"

"Umm, well, a little." Sophia said, disheartened, she couldn't bring herself to look away from the fake eye.

"Why don' you be home now?" The lady gave her a crooked grin showing off her missing front teeth. Her eye rolled around in its socket awkwardly.

"Home is far away now. I don't know what to do." Sophia sighed as she eyed over the lady's wares. It was a clothing stall, she looked down at her own attire, ever since being on the Diplo she had been wearing her jeans and tank, she then realized how out of place she must have looked. Not to mention the dirt and grim layered on it from the crash and sleeping on dirt.

She fingered the fine fabrics, but pulled away fast, banishing the thought from her mind. Why bother with new clothes when she would be home soon. Hopefully. Maybe. Probably. Not.

"How you find yourself here?" Sophia thought ironically, _well, I only arrived here by an emergency pod because the space shuttle I was on earlier was attacked and destroyed_, She sighed and replied, " I…umm, guess you could say I…don't really know."

The old woman's eyebrow arched and gave Sophia another toothless grin, "I'm sure all be well in time girlie, come closer, I read fortune." Sophia hesitantly took a step forward at the old woman's beckoning.

Albel watched from the shadows, so close to her he could see her trembling a bit. His eyes narrowed on the old hag, his fist already on the hilt of his sword in case of any trickery, he didn't trust the hag one bit. He restrained himself from swinging his blade down on the old woman's hand.

"Oh tut tut, girlie, I see a man, he be only having one hand. Angry fellow, anyone you know girlie?" The old woman said, taking Sophia by the hand and facing it palm up, Sophia gasped.

"I know him!" She said excitedly, the woman just cackled, sneaking a glance into the shadows.

"Aye, you be wanting to go home?"

"Yes! Yes!" Sophia nodded her head.

"He will help you, he be waiting by the gate leading to Palmira Plains." Sophia immediately jerked her hands away, frown upon her face.

"No he's not…" She said, Sophia tried not to think about the swordsman, "Why would he." She said with a voice laced with bitterness. The old woman eyed her strangely, then her gaze seemed to rest on the shadows of her stall, Sophia thought she saw something shine, but her attention was quickly averted when the old lady hastily pulled her down eye level by her collar, her eye darting to and fro the shadows.

"He cares for you more than you know girlie, don't be fooled, but don't be a fool. It be the ones that care most, hurt you most." She said in a hushed whisper, before letting her go, accenting the last part with a roll of her fake eye.

Sophia stumbled a couple steps and looked at the old lady in confusion, before rushing off away from her, while departing she heard the lady laugh dementedly in her wake.

When Sophia ran blindly out of the square running deeper into the market, Albel rushed the stall and stared the hag down, drawing his blade and pointing the tip an inch away from her face, "What did you say to her?" He growled. The commotion made the other vendors and folk stare.

"You and her be needing a push, I gave push," She said, cackling crazily.

"You better be gone now, girlie be waiting by the gate, remember sonny?" She shook her head, the beads on her dress jangled as she retreated into the shade of her stall, Albel looked at her sharply before sheathing his blade and taking controlled steps to the gate.

Sophia tried to calm her breathing as she neared the inventors guild, but with what little pride she had, she couldn't bring herself to walk in and admit to Adray that she didn't know what to do. She pulled at the ends of her hair, biting the bottom of her lip, sighed, then leaned against the crumbling wall, slowly falling to her feet. She felt tears sting the corner of her eyes.

"I'm gonna kill you Albel!" She growled into her hands. The people who heard turned to look before rushing off, "This is all his fault!" She continued yelling.

'_If I ever see that, that, that….that jerk again I'm_ _gonna smack his face so hard that his smirk falls right off his perfectly chiseled face!'_ Her face flushed when she realized what she was thinking. She did not find Albel attractive, intimidating strong? Yes, attractive? …Maybe. "Ugghhh!" she groaned into her hands yet again.

She thought back to the demented lady's ramblings. Without even thinking, she got to her feet, pure rage towards Albel was the only thing on her mind, the only thing that motivated her at the moment. She ran to the gate, eyes zeroing in on every face she came to, till the end of the bridge.

He wasn't there. She didn't know why she thought he would. She stood there awkwardly, people pushing past her trying to get in an out of the city. She was pushed off to the side. She felt her face burn with humiliation.

Albel tried to walk away. He tried to stop looking. He tried. He really did. She just looked so pathetic. If it was anything he hated more than fools, it was quitters. The way she stood there so dejectedly made him cringe. Something inside of him gave him this angry feeling, but not at her, strangely, at himself. No one makes Albel the Wicked feel that way. No one, he glared at the girl.

Once again he was in the shadows, looking on as she was being pushed around by the rush hour crowd. Two things also angered him here, how she just let them, and that they had the gall to push her aside. He watched as her face flushed and she tried to make her way out of the crowd, but they were relentless, trying to get in and out, pushing and pulling. In short, it pissed him off. Especially that look in her eye, that look of hopelessness and defeat.

Albel couldn't take it.

He moved out of the shadows. No one noticed him until a man who stepped right in his path gasped. The war may be over, but his name and face was infamous and in some places unwelcome if they were brave enough to admit so. The man backed up, stuttering an apology, the sudden disruption in the traffic flow made other people look on, and like the man, back up. It was almost as if Albel was surrounded by an invisible wall. He smirked at seeing their faces riled up with fear.

He slowly and deliberately made his way over to the girl. She hadn't seen him yet, her back was to him, she was still trying to get out of the throng of people. Albel smirked, he was getting closer, he was directly behind her now. He could tell she was confused by the way people finally backed off from her.

Albel said nothing as he pushed her forward with a hand on her head through the path being opened up by the people, "Whha….?"

Sophia tried straining her head to see who had grabbed the top of her head and began pushing, strangely people just let her and her….captor through with no problem, they even seemed to shake a little bit. She felt like she should have been more concerned about the person pushing her forward by her skull, but for some reason she felt at ease with it, she felt like she could trust the person. She felt…safe almost.

They cleared the gate with no problem, the person behind her didn't stop pushing her until they were a good distance away, "Okay! You can stop now!" she said, trying to turn her head to see the person she hoped on her dear life it was, but she knew it was him. It had to be.

The person let go and Sophia stumbled a little before whipping around to see the person who helped her through the crowd, although roughly. She didn't even have to see the person's face to know who it was. As she was turning she extended her hand getting ready for the biggest and only slap she'd ever given to anyone in her entire life.

Just as her palm was going to smack his face with a resounding slap, her wrist was intercepted only an inch away from his face, that face with that infuriating smirk. Sophia's determination to be angry at him did not fade. She tried shaking her wrist out of his grip, but to no avail.

"I-I hate you!" She screamed at his face, her face flushed with frustration.

"You just left me there, you selfish pig of a man! I can't believe you would just leave me there by myself! I was so, you are such a, ughh!" She screamed, pounding her other fist into his chest.

He hadn't said anything so far, he hadn't done anything, except let her hit him and scream in his face. The site was a little ridiculous, his towering height and her flustered face.

"I think you're a coward, a jerk, a monster, a moron, and umm…a chicken!" She said triumphantly, "That's right! A chicken!!" She said once again for emphasis. He still did nothing.

Albel just stood there, he didn't care or listen to what she had to say. All he saw was her soft lips jump up and down, he didn't even realize his hand still held on tightly to her wrist. The audacity of her even thinking she could land a hit on him shocked him. He heard nothing she said, concentrating on her in general instead.

Albel observed her, her face was red, her eyes burning with anger, her hair slightly mussed where his hand was before. Another thing he didn't understand was why she was so damned mad. Had he not just saved her pathetic self. If she wanted to be alone then for all he cares she could just go. But he knew that wasn't what he really thought. If that had been the case, he should have left for Airyglyph long ago. He scoffed at his own thoughts.

It was then he noticed that she was hitting his chest, with some vigor he might add. His eyebrow raised at her act of brashness. He also noticed she had stopped shouting and was glaring at him, but he could tell it was halfhearted, her anger seemed to have faded while he was somewhat ignoring her, but her pounding on his chest had not.

He finally had enough, with the wrist he still had in his hand, he pulled her closer to him, bringing her wrist up, almost holding her in the air with it, she was now standing on the tips of her toes, their bodies were touching now, their faces only mere inches apart.

"Are you done yet girl?" He said huskily. She felt his warmth breath on her cheek, her anger was almost renewed, and her face flushed again, but this time she didn't think it was because of anger, but she reasoned, what else could it have been?

Albel hadn't realized what he had done till he felt her warm body against his, the rise and fall of her chest as it seemed she was gasping for air from the sudden change, and the way her eyes bore into his. He got lost in them.

Neither knew how long they stood there like statues, holding a battle with their eyes, who would be the first one to look away, who would be the first one to falter, but neither had to break away, because at that moment an acorn was thrown at them. Neither of them paid attention, till a _few_ acorns were thrown on them.

Sophia looked up at the tree branch above them. It looked like a squirrel, a flying squirrel, it glided from tree to tree, no bigger than a fist. Albel looked at it crossly, and the way his eyebrow twitched made Sophia giggle, then wince as she lost her balance on the tips on her toes, causing her arm pain. Albel quickly let go of her, sending her to her feet once more.

Albel was getting ready to slice off the branch, aiming for the flying, or rather gliding squirrel. Sophia saw this and immediately positioned herself between the squirrel and Albel, Albel glared at her, "Move."

"No." She said just as fiercely, standing her ground. The squirrel seeing its safety resting with the girl, glided over and landed on her shoulder, Sophia looked at it and smiled, petting it softly on the head, whispering into its ear. Albel fought the urge to roll his eyes and scoff at the silly display of affection. It was a rodent.

"I'll name you Zazu." She said, completely disregarding Albel, in truth, she was relieved at Zazu, as she had just named him, interrupted, she had no idea what would've happened or how long they would've stood there had Zazu not appear. Her heart was still beating fast and she could still feel the warmth from his body.

From the corner of her eye, she could see Albel sheath his sword, still glaring at her in resignation. Albel was confused. Not that he would ever admit it to anyone, but he was confused. His heart was beating irregularly and his face was hot. It couldn't be because of this stupid girl. No, it could definitely not be.

With a purposeful turn, he started walking towards the way to Airyglyph, if the girl wanted to follow, then so be it. He made it four or five steps before something made him stop, but with his pride, he wouldn't turn to look at the girl, "I am heading to Airyglyph, follow if you want. I do not care." Then continued walking.

Sophia looked at his retreating form, what had gotten into him all of the sudden? Zazu squeaked from his spot on her shoulder, Sophia promptly got up and ran after Albel. Leave me once, your bad. Leave me twice, mine.

And with that, the three companions, if they could be called that, left the city of Peterny.


End file.
